Leonardo Spinazzola Named to Euro 2020 Team of the Tournament

Although the big news of today is the official unveiling of Roma’s first home kit with New Balance, the end of the Euros also means the release of the traditional Team of the Tournament. Given Italy’s phenomenal run to the championship, there are several Italian National Team members in the squad, including long-time standards of the Azzurri like Leonardo Bonucci and Gianluigi Buffon Donnarumma. My personal favorite of all of the players who excelled in the tournament, however, is Roma starting left-back and Dentist Recommender Extraordinaire Leonardo Spinazzola:

It’s no surprise that Spinazzola made the Team of the Tournament. He was one of a handful of players to win multiple Star of the Match awards, and if you thought Leo was influential in Roma’s attack this past season, his impact on the Azzurri was arguably even more significant. The only real question regarding Spinazzola receiving these honors was whether or not his tragic Achilles tear during the match against Belgium would mean he would lose his spot in the Best Eleven to Luke Shaw; happily, that didn’t come to pass.

This award doesn’t change the fact that Spinazzola is out for the foreseeable future with that aforementioned Achilles tear; José Mourinho stated in his opening interview with the club that he expected Leo to basically be a new signing when he returns in January 2022. Given that, the Giallorossi look set to find a temporary replacement for the Italian international at left-back soon (assuming Riccardo Calafiori doesn’t force his way into serious contention for the starting eleven).

Until then, though, we can all appreciate how far Spinazzola’s come in the past few seasons and look forward to his return to the pitch for the Giallorossi. If he can replicate even half of what he brought to the table for the Azzurri during the Euros, the Giallorossi backline will be in excellent shape.